Frances McDormand Oscar theft case against party-goer dropped

22nd Aug 2019 | Source: BBC

Frances McDormand had her Oscar engraved with her name at the Governor's Ball before it went missing

Charges have been dropped against a US man accused of stealing actress Frances McDormand's Oscar trophy at an Academy Awards party in 2018.

Terry Bryant, 58, was arrested last year on suspicion of grand theft after the statuette went missing.

But a Los Angeles judge has now granted a defence bid to dismiss the case after prosecutors said they couldn't proceed.

McDormand won the award for best actress in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.

The district attorney's office did not say on Tuesday why the case could not move forward.

Los Angeles police had said that Mr Bryant was a ticket holder for the Governor's Ball, which is the official formal dinner after the ceremony.

Video showed a tuxedo-wearing Mr Bryant leaving the party holding the statuette and saying: "We did it!" His lawyer argued in previous hearings that Mr Bryant did not intend to keep the award, which was quickly recovered and returned to McDormand.

It was her second Oscar, 21 years after she won one for her performance in Fargo.